Said Corp: “Five News has a strong tradition of independence and spirit and I am really looking forward to working with a newsroom that has the confidence to tell the stories that people care about, in such a distinctive way.”

Corp joined ITN as a trainee and her early career included the roles of north of England and senior field producer, covering major stories in the UK and abroad, from Kosovo, Afghanistan and Iraq, to the Hutton Inquiry and the Soham murders.

She spent time at the BBC as its senior Moscow producer before returning to ITV News as a news editor, rising to deputy head then head of home news during which time her reporting team twice won the Royal Television Society Award for coverage of Jihadi Terror and Thomas Cook.

Paul Dunthorne, chief operating officer at Channel 5 said Corp’s appointment was a” further step forward in the evolution of our news service”.

ITN chief executive John Hardie described her as an “extremely talented journalist and leader who has risen rapidly through the ranks at ITN since beginning her career here as a trainee”.

He added: “Whether running news-gathering operations on breaking stories or overseeing major investigations, Rachel has consistently demonstrated her judgement, eye for a story and creative flair.

“These are exciting times for 5 News, and I´m very much looking forward to the next stage of its evolution under Rachel´s leadership.”